Five students from Mohawk Valley Community College’s Airframe and Powerplant program – Erik Forys, Jacob Edwards, Joziah Underwood, Matthew Carney, and Noah Kohuth – competed in an international aerospace maintenance competition during the MRO Americas conference in April in Orlando, Fla., and placed 13th. The competition hosted 72 teams, 25 of which were from Airframe and Powerplant schools.
MVCC’s students, only eight months into their twelve-month program at the time of the event, competed against students from other colleges with more than two years of aviation maintenance training, including some that already earned FAA Airframe and Powerplant certificates. Teams included professional maintenance engineers, technicians, and students from the United States military, commercial aviation, aircraft manufacturer industries, and many of the most prestigious schools in the country, including Utah State University and Broward College. The event was streamed live online in 37 countries.
Each team was required to compete in all events including removing and installing wheel and brake assemblies and doing internal inspections of state-of-the-art turbine engines. Each team’s final score was based on total time required to complete the task. Teams were given 15 minutes maximum to complete a task and assessed time penalties for any errors. This allowed teams to be evaluated on actual time, proficiency, and attention to detail.
MVCC’s Airframe and Powerplant program is the only community college-based aviation maintenance program in New York State and one of only a few one-year programs in the country. During the course of 12 months, students receive 1,905 hours of FAA-approved training (Certificate No. FAR147) that prepares them to sit for the examinations required to be issued the FAA Airframe and Powerplant Certificate. To learn more about the program, visit mvcc.edu/aviation, or call 315-338-7826. To learn more about MVCC and its programs, visit mvcc.edu.
